ABSTRACT: Background: The prevalence of child obesity is
increasing rapidly worldwide as well as Turkey due to skipped main meals and
increased snacking. The objectives were to study the prevalence rates of
overweight and obesity in a group of Turkish children, and to analyze the
relationship between eating habits and lifestyle and obesity. Methods: The
study was carried out in 6 schools in urban regions in the city of Eskisehir,
Western Turkey between February and May2008. Atotal of 1421 students aged 7 - 14
years (708 boys and 713 girls) were examined. Eating habits and life-style
were obtained by evaluation of a standard set of 15 questions prepared using
the literature. Results: Most obese students reported having a snack in the afternoon,
not spending at least five hours of leisure time per week in physical activities,
being high income level, that their mother’ education level was university,
eating less fruits, eating less vegetables, having more dessert after any
meal, eating more potato chips, watching television more, living a physically
active life less, less breast feeding, that
their father consumed alcohol, that their father was overweight/ obese,
their mother wase overweight/obese (statistically important relationships for
each one). Conclusions: A small portion of 7 - 14-year-old Turkish children are
at increased health risk owing to overweight and obesity in an urban po- pulation
in a developing country.